If you've been dreaming of a passwordless future, we've got some news you're going to want to hear. Passkeys are coming soon, and they're going to be a lot more secure than passwords. And while IT and security professionals will breathe a sigh of relief when passkeys arrive, regular internet users have reason to celebrate, too. Passkeys are eventually going to make your online life a lot easier. Here's what you need to know about passkeys, why they're safer than passwords, and how you'll use them in your daily life.
What are passkeys?
A passkey is a form of login credential that lets you access your online accounts more securely than a password can. Unlike a password, which you have to remember and provide every time you want to log in, a passkey works behind the scenes. Once you've set up a passkey for an account, it automatically offers to log you in the next time you go to access that account. All you have to do is click on the button to log in, and you're all set. No more fumbling around to remember which password goes with which site.
Crucially, each passkey is unique. Passkeys cannot be re-used across different sites or apps, which helps keep your accounts more secure. Even if a cyber attacker were able to somehow able to get a hold of your passkey (a task that is going to be increasingly difficult for reasons we'll explain in just a moment), they would not be able to use it to log into your other accounts. With passkeys protecting your accounts, you can go about your digital life without having to worry nearly as much about falling victim to a phishing attack or a data breach.
Ok, so how do passkeys work? Under the hood, a passkey is actually a cryptographic key pair. It is composed of a public key (which is shared with the relying party website) as well as a private key (which is stored directly on your device). Both the public key and the private key must be provided to log into an account that has been secured with a passkey.
This new passwordless authentication process is much more secure than traditional password-based authentication. A password can be stolen, guessed, bought, or cracked. It's not so easy to do the same thing with a passkey, however. Unless someone is able to gain access to the device that stores your private key, then they're going to have a hard time getting into your account. An attacker could not truly compromise your passkey even if they were able to hack into the server where your public key was stored. They would still need the other half of that cryptographic key pair – your private key – to log in as you.
How will I use passkeys?
Several major tech companies are rolling out support for passkeys later this year. When they do, you'll start seeing the option to set up a passkey for some of the accounts you use at work and in your personal life. Setting up a passkey is straightforward, and it only takes a few minutes. Depending on the site, browser, and/or device you'll be using, you may have the option to set up your passkey using biometrics like a fingerprint or facial recognition, a PIN or passcode, a pattern, or even a physical authentication dongle like a YubiKey.
After you have set up a passkey for one of the sites you use, you'll be able to use it every time you log in from that point forward. The site will automatically ask you if you'd like to use the passkey, and you can just proceed. You will be able to rely on the passkey to handle the authentication process for you. Because passkeys can be synced to the cloud, you can use them across multiple devices. This way, you'll be able to use your passkeys regardless of whether you happen to be on a computer or a mobile device.
With support for passkeys coming to LastPass in the near future, you'll be able to create, save, and access passkeys on all the devices where you use LastPass, regardless of the operating system or platform you're on, just like you already do with passwords. You will also be able to use LastPass to securely share passkeys with someone you trust, making it that much easier to safely go about your digital life.
Will I be able to use passkeys for everything?
Although passkeys are going to make being on the internet safer and more convenient, they will have a few limitations at the beginning. So far, passkeys are not universally available. Although tech giants have announced support for them, there are plenty of smaller sites and apps that may not allow them just yet. Some web browsers may not fully support passkeys right away, meaning you could have a pretty smooth experience logging into a site using a passkey from your mobile device only to find out that you can't do the same thing from your desktop computer or laptop. In this situation, you'll either have to switch to a browser that does support passkeys or continue using a password when you log in from that computer. You probably won't be able to completely eliminate all of your passwords the moment passkeys become available, but if you become familiar with passkeys now, you'll be ready when we finally go fully passwordless.
Get ready for passkeys
Although passwords got us to this stage of the digital era, passkeys are waiting in the wings. Not only will they do a better job of protecting you from a phishing attack or a data breach, but they'll ultimately make it easier to access your online accounts, too. That way, rather than dealing with all the stress and annoyances that come from fumbling around for the right password or worrying that it's putting you at risk, you can just focus on logging in and getting stuff done. With that in mind, keep a lookout for passkeys and consider trying them out when you have the chance.
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